Hawk helmet, silver half-armor—unlike the Hawkgirl Thea remembered, this Earth-2 Hawkgirl didn't carry a small mace but had switched to a crossbow. To Thea, the crossbow was a magical weapon.
However, the energy within her body was strange—not Horus's divine power, but rather a peculiar type of magic.
Thea said nothing, wearing the perfect bystander's expression as she stood watching the show. Hawkgirl anxiously told old Batman, "Khalid's condition is getting worse—he doesn't recognize me anymore!"
Old Batman shared several similarities with his son, namely maintaining a poker face even if the sky fell.
"Did you use my sedative? Are his blood pressure and heartbeat normal?"
Hawkgirl removed her helmet. Unlike the Kendra from Thea's timeline, this one had sharper features and a more commanding presence.
Her voice held some impatience. "All his physical indicators are normal. It's just that Nabu's erosion of him is getting increasingly severe."
Nabu? There was a Nabu here too? This must be about Doctor Fate, right? Thea was somewhat intrigued. Though she hadn't spoken, old Batman noticed her expression.
"Do you have a solution? This seems to be magic's domain?"
Following old Batman's words, everyone's eyes focused on Thea.
"Who is she?" Realizing her true identity was exposed, Hawkgirl quickly raised her crossbow.
Thea merely glanced at her casually. Hawkgirl Kendra immediately felt her whole body go weak, mentally exhausted to the extreme. She nearly dropped her crossbow, using all her strength to grip it with trembling hands, barely keeping from collapsing on shaky legs.
Still a weakling—couldn't even withstand a little spiritual pressure. She was a bit stronger than her timeline's Hawkgirl, but only marginally.
Her eyes flickered as she released the spiritual pressure. Only then could Hawkgirl gasp for breath and stand straight.
"I'm not your enemy, little bird." Thea met Hawkgirl's eyes, speaking each word clearly.
Fear arose in Hawkgirl's heart, but as this world's "strongest combat power," her willpower was at least passing. She gritted her teeth and said nothing.
Old Batman and old Green Arrow showed no intention of intervening. What superhero didn't have some pride? Meeting someone new usually meant a fight to see whose fist was bigger—the stronger fist did the talking.
Thea had no interest in dominating a weakling. She was just curious why this world had Hawkgirl but no Hawkman. "Who's this Nabu you mentioned? Is he possessing someone named Khalid?"
In Thea's view, this should be a story of Nabu's helmet performing body-snatching rebirth. Unlike her original timeline though, this Nabu seemed rather unscrupulous.
Hawkgirl still didn't know what had just happened to her or if Thea had even done anything.
But when it came to her lover, she didn't refuse to answer.
"Nabu is an ancient mage, possibly even the most powerful one. Khalid and I accidentally entered his tomb. Afterward, I gained these wings, while Khalid..."
Not a god? Actually a mage? Thea thought this universe's Nabu seemed more like her world's old Shazam.
Was it because he hadn't ascended to godhood that his humanity remained, so now that he'd caught an unlucky victim, he'd begun body-snatching?
The truth might differ slightly, but probably not far off.
Whether divine power, magical power, or witch power—once the body-snatching process began, it meant two souls starting to merge. Unless reality was altered, it was irreversible.
"Khalid prophesied that gods and yellow lightning would come to save this world..." Only after finishing did Hawkgirl look toward Thea. This woman, beautiful beyond reason, made her feel oppressed even just standing there casually.
Ordinary people couldn't sense Thea's true nature. Hawkgirl had some magic power—not much, but enough to make her half a member of the magical world. Her crossbow was magic-powered.
Compared to old Batman and old Green Arrow, she had a better grasp of the boundless sea of magic within Thea.
Could this woman be the savior from Khalid's prophecy?
Wanting to take her to see Khalid, but their previous relationship hadn't been friendly. Fortunately, Thea extended an olive branch. "I'm fairly proficient in magic. Perhaps I can examine your friend?"
Thea's thinking was simple. This world was too weak. Having a magical-side hero was a good thing. If this Nabu wasn't evil, then let the body-snatching be.
"Are you two coming as well?" Thea asked the two old men.
Old Batman declined directly—he had a pile of matters to coordinate. Old Robert had nothing pressing and was prepared to go along.
"Where does Khalid live?" Thea asked Hawkgirl.
Hawkgirl replaced her helmet, but seeing Thea and old Robert standing there leisurely without any sign of boarding a plane, she was confused but still answered, "New Orleans."
Knowing the destination, Thea began locating it with spiritual power. Her spiritual search was now much faster than super-vision.
She quickly found the magic similar to Hawkgirl's. The magic was murky—good news, since the assimilation wasn't complete. She grabbed Hawkgirl and old Robert and teleported over.
Having seen this kind of teleportation several times during previous battles, old Robert wasn't too surprised. What Hawkgirl experienced was shock. In the blink of an eye, they were home! I only said New Orleans—how did you find my house?
Being polite, Thea didn't teleport directly inside but set the coordinates outside the door, gesturing for Hawkgirl to open it.
Surrounded by wilderness, only a solitary wooden cabin stood awkwardly in the desolate outskirts.
Hawkgirl looked left and right before finally confirming this really was her home, not some illusion.
Gently pushing open the door, she invited them inside.
The interior decor was unconventional. One wall was covered with weapons—several bows and crossbows, curved swords, battle axes, rocket launchers, energy guns, you name it.
The opposite bookshelf was piled with ancient texts. Having seen Dr. Sivana's study, Thea quickly recognized these books covered various mythological knowledge, hidden information, and forbidden knowledge. The owner must be an archaeologist.
A man with somewhat pale skin sat in a chair by the floor-to-ceiling window, head lowered, lost in thought, completely ignoring the newcomers.
Hawkgirl rushed over, calling out several times, but the man's unfocused eyes showed no response.
"Let me see. This looks like traces of Egyptian magic. By the way, you do have Egypt here, right?" Thea's hands glowed as she began searching the mental world for this person's original consciousness.
Hawkgirl looked utterly confused. What do you mean "you have Egypt here"? She turned to look at old Robert.
Only then did old Robert realize he'd never explained Thea's origins. He quietly told the story.
"She's your daughter from a parallel timeline?" Hawkgirl felt overwhelmingly absurd, but concern for her lover made her temporarily abandon further questions, focusing on watching Thea heal him.
Thea didn't disappoint. After just a brief search, she found Khalid's original consciousness.